Snow on the Aran Islands and frost over the Burren marked a continuation of the cold snap in the west yesterday. Travel in and out of the region was disrupted for a second day.
Provincial bus services from Galway were cancelled, and Galway's Carnmore Airport was frozen over, with no break expected before the weekend. However, rail and sea transport services ran as normal. Passengers who had been booked on cancelled Aer Arann flights to and from Dublin and the west were given the option of travelling by train.
Knock Airport in Co Mayo reported a clear runway by midday yesterday, but passengers booked on Ryanair were delayed by bad weather at Stansted Airport which affected incoming flights.
Gardai in Galway and Mayo advised against travel by road unless absolutely necessary. Roads were salted and gritted in urban areas, but Mayo gardai reported that the Westport-Clifden road was treacherous.
The Westport-Louisburgh route was also very dangerous, Garda Eileen Joyce said. There were serious problems on Achill Island's roads, she added.
The Dublin-Galway road was risky in the midlands, around Athlone and Ballinasloe, and on the Craughwell-Oranmore stretch approaching Galway, according to gardai in Loughrea. Snowfalls in Galway city did not settle, but freezing temperatures last night are expected to cause more problems today.
There were no reports of serious accidents. Motorists complained about inadequate gritting.
The O'Brien Ferries service from Galway docks to the Aran Islands will not run today due to an inspection of the vessel. The ferry was set adrift by vandals on Christmas Eve and was towed off rocks in the bay. Gardai are investigating the incident.
